World Business Quick Take

Agencies

Sun, Aug 04, 2013 - Page 15

WTO

US wins PRC poultry appeal

The WTO has ruled in favor of the US in a long-standing trade dispute concerning allegations that China unfairly imposed anti-dumping tariffs that restricted US poultry exports. The US appeal to the WTO dates back to 2011 after China said that the US had engaged in dumping and had imposed tariffs on imports of so-called ``broiler products,’’ which include most chicken products, with the exception of live chickens. China said US chicken producers benefited from subsidies and were exporting their goods at unreasonably low prices. Countries are allowed to impose punitive tariffs to offset both practices, but US officials claimed China did not follow proper procedures when it imposed them in September 2010. The US also said tens of thousands of jobs were affected. China was one of the two top markets for US chicken exports before the tariffs.

INTERNET

Yahoo buys browser maker

Yahoo has acquired Rockmelt, a US startup company that built a Web browser tied to Facebook’s social network. It is the 20th acquisition that Yahoo has completed since Marissa Mayer became the company’s CEO nearly 13 months ago. Rockmelt has raised about US$40 million from venture capitalists and other investors since its inception. That makes it likely Yahoo had to be above that amount to buy the company. Rockmelt unveiled its Facebook-focused Web browser in late 2010, however, it never gained traction. The startup later introduced a version designed for smartphones and tablets.

LABOR

US employers slow hirings

US employers slowed their pace of hiring last month, but the jobless rate fell anyway, a pair of mixed signals that could make the US Federal Reserve more cautious about drawing down its huge economic stimulus program. The number of jobs outside the farming sector increased by 162,000 last month, the smallest gain in four months, and below analysts’ expectations, Labor Department data showed on Friday. The lackluster reading reinforced the view that the job market is only inching toward recovery from the 2007 to 2009 recession and weighed on financial markets. At the same time, gains in employment were enough to push the unemployment rate down to 7.4 percent, its lowest level since December 2008.

COMPUTERS

Dell rallies in buying battle

Just when it looked as if he might be ready to give it all up, Dell CEO Michael Dell has regained the advantage in the lengthy battle to buy the slumping personal computer company that he founded nearly three decades ago. He did it by persuading the company’s board to accept a slightly better offer that adds a one-time dividend in exchange for a pivotal change in how shareholders will vote on the deal. The latest twist in the saga that has lasted half a year emerged on Friday, shortly before Dell was scheduled to hold a shareholder vote on the company’s proposed sale to Michael Dell and investment firm Silver Lake Partners for US$24.4 billion, or US$13.65 per share. Michael Dell wants to further diversify a company that has had trouble adapting to the growing use of smartphones and tablet computers over the desktops and laptops that Dell makes.